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Bob Gerard
|birthplace = Leicester, England |death date = |placeofdeath =South Croxton, Leicester |nationality = |status =Deceased |firstrace =1950 British Grand Prix |lastrace =1957 British Grand Prix }} Frederick Roberts "Bob" Gerard (born 19 January 1914 in Leicester, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom – died 26 January 1990 in South Croxton, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom) was a British racing driver who competed in Formula One from it's inception in to . Notable for wearing spectacles for his nearsightedness on the racetrack, he managed to secure three sixth-place finishes in aging machinery. Born into an automotive family, Gerard started racing in his father's , taking part in hillclimbs in the 1930s. He later started club races before the war interrupted his career. After the war, he purchased an from Reg Parnell and after buying another ERA, stated competing in Grand Prix races. He was successful; he won races in the British Empire Trophy (three times), the Jersey Road Race (twice) and the Ulster Trophy; while during the British Grands Prix he managed two podiums in and . Gerard competed at the first World Championship race, the 1950 British Grand Prix, but finished in sixth place, just outside of the points. He then proceeded to finish the next race, the , in sixth place as well. Switching to a chassis in , Gerard managed to keep up the impressive performances in home races, winning the and in 1953 and the . He would score another sixth place at the 1957 British Grand Prix, his final Championship Grand Prix, before finishing his Grand Prix career in 1958. He continued racing into the 1960s, and acted as an entrant for up-and-coming drivers until the 1980s. Formula One Career Before Formula One Bob Gerard cut his teeth competing in hillclimbs in the 1930's in the family and was a regular at local club meetings at his local Donington Park achieving strong results ere and at Brooklands. After the war, Gerard purchased his first out and out racing car, an R4A, purchased off Reg Parnell for £1000 and used his engineering nous to tune the car and other ERA's followed as he and his wife Joan contested hillclimbs and circuit races whilst he continued to modify the cars. Gerard used his modified ERA 14B to win three back to back British Empire Trophies in , and and used this decade old car to finish third at the 1948 British Grand Prix behind the two brand new Maserati's of Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi and a year later in the 1949 British Grand Prix finished second to Toulo de Graffenried. 1950 Gerard continued his remarkable performances in his ancient into the 1950 Formula One season with a sixth place finish, ahead of and machinery at the at Silverstone. A week later, he achieved the feat again at the second round of the season at Monaco, beating Talbot-Lago driver Johnny Claes into sixth place. Gerard would not appear at any further Championship races in 1950 and his two sixth places meant he failed to score any points. At the , he secured his third victory at the event in four years. He also achieved podiums at the (second) and the (third). 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 Gerard's only participation was in the , and he retired after 30 of the 50 laps. After Formula One Formula One Statistical Overview Formula One Record Note: For Formula One years, italics indicates an entry or constructor that did not participate in World Championship races. Career Statistics Race Wins Pre-Championship Non-Championship Career Results ||||0|NC}} Notes External links *Wikipedia article *STATS F1 profile *OldRacingCars profile Category:British Drivers Category:1914 births Category:1990 deaths Category:1950 Début Drivers Category:ERA Drivers Category:Cooper Drivers